One of the messiest and most dreaded aspects of using a recreational vehicle (RV) is dumping the waste of the holding tank into the inlet receptacle of an RV dump station. Traditionally, this is accomplished by means of a loose hose which connects to an outlet on the recreational vehicle by hand, with the other end being manually connected to the inlet of the dump station. Additionally, a fitting must be put on the outboard end of the hose so it adapts to the particular size of the inlet at that particular dump station. Inlets vary from 3" to 41/2", so that the RV operator generally carries three adapters for the three commonly used sizes within that range. This system is the most labor intensive, the messiest, and the most old-fashioned.
Other systems have been developed, including one developed by the instant inventor on which a patent is issued bearing U.S. Pat. No. 4,133,347. This patent discloses a telescoping hose which fits inside a tubular housing, such that the hose can be pulled out to an extended position with the outer end then mated to the dump inlet. This avoids having a loose hose to deal with, and does not require attachment of the hose to the RV outlet in as much as it is always attached at that end. However, the outer end still must be mated to the dump station inlet, and some means must still be provided to keep the hose from sagging if the extension is very long to prevent pockets of waste from accumulating in the sags.
Several devices are commercially available for preventing sagging of the waste line. It is important that the waste line achieve a preferably uniform angle of decline from the RV to the ground level inlet to avoid the above-referenced waste accumulation in sags. If the run is short, this is not a problem. However, most runs are long enough that sags would occur, and spaced hose supports, or a collapsible parallelogram defining a long inclined hose support, are among the devices currently available to support the hose.
Additionally, there is at least one system which uses a telescoping rigid outer tube which supports the hose up to a certain length from the recreational vehicle. A system of this type is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,223,702, issued Sept. 23, 1980. The rigid outer tube defines an adequate incline, although very frequently runs substantially longer than the tube are required, leaving the problem of unsupported lengths of the tube unresolved.
There are thus at least three problems with the RV hose dump system which are in need of a better solution. First, a means for extending and retracting the hose without requiring manual pushing and pulling would be welcomed in the industry. Second, a universal adapter to mate the extended end of the hose to the dump station inlet without requiring three separate adapters to be carried on the RV would be a blessing indeed. Third, it would be very convenient to have a system for causing the hose to assume the proper incline without the use of yet more equipment that must be stowed on the vehicle, for use only in the dumping operation.
These needs break down into two general areas. First, it is obviously desireable to minimize or eliminate the paraphernalia that must be carried on the RV, where space is limited already, and which have no other purpose as collateral equipment beyond the waste draining operation. Second, the labor involved in draining the waste storage tank is not a labor of love, but is messy and something that is dreaded by all RV operators. A system that would reduce the number of steps and operations necessary to accomplish this function, and reduce the spillage and messiness of it, would be a boon to RV operators.